CJI Day 2: Wheels Up CEO George Mattson Sees Long-Term Tailwinds for UP & The Biz Av Industry at Large

(Miami, Florida) Wheels Up (NYSE: UP) Chief Executive Officer George Mattson’s panel during Day 2 of the Corporate Jet Investor conference in Miami (Nov. 12), “Wheels Up one year on,” focused largely on UP’s growth trajectory – and projections for positive industry and company-specific tailwinds in the near future – since the company’s takeover last year by a consortium consisting of Delta Airlines (NYSE: DAL), Centares Management, Knighthood Capital Management and Cox Enterprises.

Photo of Wheels UP CEO George Mattson speaking during his panel on Day 2 of Corporate Jet Investor Miami, “Wheels Up one year on,” courtesy of Corporate Jet Investor.

The strategic ~ $500 million investment made by the Delta, Centrares, Knighthood and Cox consortium in Wheels Up in September of 2023 – in exchange for a 95% ownership stake in the company – helped Wheels Up avoid bankruptcy at that time (Delta’s specific stake in UP currently stands at ~ 37.75%, per FactSet). Yesterday, Mattson, a former Goldman Sachs Partner and Delta Air Lines board member, spoke to bucking the trend of seven quarters of declining revenues – as he previously discussed last week on the company’s Nov. 9th 3Q2024 earnings call – and explained that with revenues now stabilizing, his company is poised for both short- and long-term growth.

“Growth will come from offering something that customers want to buy, something that’s flexible and that fits in with real customer preferences,” Mattson said.

Specifically, Mattson explained that both UP’s charter and programmatic businesses are poised for growth, given long-term tailwinds associated with the air charter industry. Responding to a question from the audience, Mattson said that he expects UP to become profitable in the near future.

Photo of a Wheels Up-owned aircraft in flight courtesy of Wheels Up on Instagram, @wheelsup.

Last week, on Wheels Up’s November 9th earnings call, Mattson spoke to his vision for the company: “to combine the separate ecosystems of private and premium commercial aviation into one seamless, flexible and accessible offering and to do it profitably through a one-of-a-kind strategic partnership with Delta Airlines.”

Yesterday, he provided specifics with respect to his vision for an integrated app solution whereby customers could compare and book both private and commercial solutions.

“All of this is coming within the suite of digital solutions we are able to offer,” Mattson explained.

Mattson ended his panel with a continuing positive message: “I knew what I was getting into on Day 1. I knew that [the corporate turnaround] was going to be full-time pedal to the medal, and we’ve seen great results. We’ve made enormous progress, and part of this job, whenever you’re taking a company through a turnaround, is that you have to believe in the company and the product and keep moving forward.”